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Westminster placed in ISO 'retrogression' program; city weighing firefighter hires and water-system work to hold rating
Summary
City staff told the council the Insurance Services Office review put Westminster's ISO rating at risk of slipping from a 2 to a 3. The city entered a retrogression program that gives it a year to regain points; officials said added firefighters and water-system improvements are the likeliest ways to restore points.
A city staff member briefed the Westminster City Council on Jan. 14 about a recent Insurance Services Office (ISO) review that put the city into ISO's retrogression program and raised the risk of losing points that sustain Westminster's current ISO rating of 2.
Staff said ISO indicated Westminster had slid below the prior scoring threshold and that, absent remedial steps, the city could move from a 2 to a 3. Rather than immediately downgrading the rating, ISO placed the city in a retrogression program that gives Westminster time — roughly a year — to fix deficiencies and regain points.
Officials said the areas most likely to restore points are additional fire-department staffing and improvements to the water system. The staff member described trade-offs: staffing increases are expensive but can restore operational and deployment points; water-system improvements can be costly but also return points tied to hydrant and supply standards.
Council heard that ISO scoring affects commercial insurance premiums more than residential premiums, but a downgrade still carries financial consequences: staff described a likely “minimal” residential change going from 2 to 3 and greater commercial impacts if ratings fall above 4. The briefing included operational data: the city's call volume was about 700 calls in the year used for ISO scoring but rose toward 1,400 in the most recent year; staff projects more than 1,600 calls next year, which affects deployment and response-time calculations.
Staff told council the city must submit a realistic plan and demonstrate the capacity to meet the new point thresholds by the October review. The recommendation was to evaluate options during the FY25 budget process and to run cost-benefit analyses to find the likely combination of staffing and capital work that achieves the needed points.
Council members asked about firefighter staffing and safety. Staff said NFPA deployment and response metrics figure in ISO scoring and noted that some apparatus-level minimums effectively require four-person engine crews to meet certain structural-fire response standards; the city currently often runs smaller crews. The staff member said the city would return with cost estimates and implementation options during budget deliberations.
